


As a Boy

by Anonymous



Series: Be Thine Own Palace [2]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Aftercare, Begging, Consensual Violence, Denial of Feelings, Dom/sub Play, Explicit Sexual Content, God Complex, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Incest, M/M, Orgasm Control, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Painplay, Praise, Public Humiliation, Repression, Self-Harm, Sexual Tension, Shadow Shido is a Good Dom, Spanking, Under-negotiated Kink, references to murder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:28:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24366589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Akechi makes a mistake. Unfortunately, Shido doesn’t take mistakes lightly. Especially not Akechi’s.But Shido can’t say the things he wants to his son. For his own reasons.As a result, in Shido’s palace, the captain decides his tool needs to be punished.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Shido Masayoshi, Shadow Shido Masayoshi/Cognitive Akechi Goro
Series: Be Thine Own Palace [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1752943
Comments: 4
Kudos: 63
Collections: Anonymous





	As a Boy

**Author's Note:**

> **About the title: “Punished as a boy” is the term for a punishment used in the British royal navy (19th century) where you got whipped on the ass instead of the back. This was more humiliating and made it harder to move afterwards.
> 
> So you see where this is going.
> 
> I should point out the ^^^TAGS^^^

“Damn it…” 

The glass of the mirror is cold against Goro’s face. It soothes his burning skin for a fleeting moment before Goro remembers the ugly reality he has yet to face.

The reality where he fucked up. 

“Goddamn it!” Throat burning, Goro bangs his head against the mirror several more times. Each one harder than the last. His skull is hurting now, his wits all mixed up from the force of being hit repeatedly. There’s an ominous ringing in his ears. 

He wants it to hurt more. He bashes his face into the glass until his thoughts stop. Again, again, again…

Fuck fuck fuck…

How could he be so careless? 

It was just a routine Mementos hit job. Goro had been stalking the train conductor for days. Why is it that tonight—the night when he brought his gun, ready to do the deed—the guy’s shadow suddenly wasn’t where it had been all along? Why hadn’t Goro looked closer before he pulled the trigger? Why was he in such a hurry to get it done? Why hadn’t he just taken more time—

Now the wrong guy is dead. He _fucking_ …Goro killed the wrong fucking guy. A problem, only because that person (some random employee at a fast food joint) immediately had a mental shutdown. The media descended on the story like wolves; Goro’s phone is blowing up with headlines. 

Now the plan is thrown off its hinges. Until Goro gets back into Mementos and kills the right guy. Which he will do. As soon as….as soon as he…

“You stupid, worthless idiot…” 

The cruel words come from his own mouth, but Goro hears them in another voice. The voice he is about to confront in real time. The voice of the man waiting in his office, just a few feet away from this bathroom…

His father’s voice. 

Tears swell in Goro’s eyes. His pitiful, disgusting, sick bastard of a father. The man that Goro spends his life trying to impress. For one reason or the other. In his heart, he doesn’t care what Shido thinks—he _doesn’t,_ Shido is the worst scum in existence—but unfortunately…Shido’s opinion is integral to Goro’s ultimate goal. Shido needs to trust and respect Goro as a useful pawn in order to keep him around. If Goro is going to exact his revenge, he needs to be by Shido’s side. The voice memo storage in Goro’s phone is glaringly empty. He hasn’t gotten any of the recordings he’s been after. It’s too soon to end this game…

He needs his father to keep him around. 

For once in his sorry life. 

Head spinning, Goro turns the hot water to full blast. The steam rises from the water and clears his sinuses. Relaxes him. He stares at the water. Knowing that it’s probably as hot as acid. 

But pain is what he needs right now. Not because he thinks he deserves it—that’s more or less irrelevant. Honestly, if this were a world where people got what they deserved, then wouldn’t they already be in jail by now? Him and Shido both? And yet here they stand. Scot free. Goro kills another person every week and the world only loves him more. So, crime and punishment are not ideals Goro holds very close to his heart. He’s stopped believing in such things. 

No, Goro wants to feel pain because…physical pain is manageable. A burn or a cut or a bruise. These are things Goro has learned to live with. In elementary school, he was the kid with the odd burn on the side of his face that he couldn’t explain to his teachers. The kid with the perpetually broken _something,_ an arm or a wrist or a limb, that meant he couldn’t participate during gym class. Pain made him an outcast from a young age, and Goro learned to treat it as a friend. His only friend, at times. Pain is constant and familiar, something Goro can control. 

At times like this, when Goro’s world tilts off its axis, and his thoughts _just won’t stop_ , Goro longs for the rush of being in control. Concentrated on handling something governable, rather than the unruly storm of distress inside him. 

His phone buzzes. It’s Shido.

**_SM:_ ** _My office. Now._

Goro nods. He’s delayed long enough. Time to face the music. 

The water is still running. Before he can fight off the temptation, Goro sticks his palm underneath the faucet—

There. _There_. When he turns off the tap, the bathroom is quiet. But there’s a low tone like an echo floating around his head. His hand burns. A red mark has already bloomed in the center. 

It calms him. He curls his fingers around the mark, like it’s a gift. Something for him to cling to when Shido tears him apart. 

__________________________

Shido takes a sip from his scotch glass. He holds the drink in his mouth as he eyes the television in his office with contempt. 

He swallows. Appreciating the burn in his gullet, something to take his mind off this whole mess.

Goddamn Akechi. What was that kid thinking, going off half-cocked in the metacognitive world? Was he out of his mind? Was he actually stupid? Was that ridiculous mask of his covering his eyes or something…? 

Shido rests his forehead in one hand. No. No, Akechi is not stupid (he’s Shido’s son, after all, there’s no way he could be stupid, his genes simply won’t allow it). He’s just a seventeen year old kid that Shido gave a gun and free license to kill. It’s no surprise that a child wouldn’t be able to pull off a correct, discrete hit job. This is what happens when you let children take the reins. 

If you spend time with babies, you wind up cleaning their diapers. That’s just a fact. Shido was a fool not to anticipate a screw up like this.

Knowing that doesn’t make him feel any better. Shido _hates_ being made to look like a fool. Especially by _Akechi_ —

“I vouched for you…” Shido says under his breath. He’s the one that vouched for Akechi to the rest of the board. He felt confident that Akechi could be the assassin they needed in the metacognitive world and he convinced them all to agree. So when Akechi makes mistakes like this, Shido is the one who looks weak. Their fates are inevitably tied in that way.

Which is ironic. Considering that Akechi is the child Shido knew nothing about until two years ago. According to the records his team uncovered at his behest. 

At that time, discovering suddenly that he had a son…

Shido doesn’t dwell on the feeling he had two years ago when he first met Akechi. Most of the time he doesn’t think about that feeling at all. But sometimes it creeps up on him. Now, for some reason, is one of those times. 

He takes another drink to combat the feeling lodged somewhere in the center of his chest. In all honesty, Shido doesn’t know what that feeling is. It feels a bit like there’s a circus performer inside of him trying to balance an egg on a spoon while he rides a unicycle. It’s a flashy, precarious feeling. Like there’s something delicate in this world outside of his control and he has an innate sense of investment in its future. 

Shido doesn’t like ostentatious displays of emotion. Or any display of emotion that isn’t calculated in the extreme. And he doesn’t like the flavor of helplessness that lurks at the bottom of this feeling. 

He doesn’t like the way Akechi makes him feel. 

He wishes, far from the first time, that he’d never met Akechi. That he never learned he had a son.

He doesn’t know anything about being a father—he doesn’t pretend to, and he’ll never put himself in a position where he needs to—but he knows now what it feels like to be disappointed in your son. 

The scotch glass is empty. There’s a knock at the door.

“Come in.” Shido turns up the television. The news is blaring. Oppressive.

Akechi stalks into the room with his head down. Even like that, he’s still so fucking tall. Shido recognizes that height. He was the same way when he was a kid. Towering over everyone else in his high school class. 

That feeling rears its head again. As soon as he lays eyes on Akechi. Shido finds himself torn—there are so many things he wants to do to Akechi. He wants to slap him in the face. He wants to yell at him until he breaks into tears. He wants to pull him in close—to his chest, where Shido can smell him. He knows what Akechi smells like from their casual contact over the years. But Shido wants more. He wants to bury his nose in Akechi’s hair and sniff. He wants to feel the weight of his lanky body in his arms. He wants to rip off that school uniform and see what Akechi looks like naked. Shido is his _father_ , damn it, it’s not fair if there’s something about Akechi that Shido doesn’t know. It’s not fair that Akechi has been hiding his body from him this whole time—

He wants to shove his tongue down Akechi’s throat and push him to the floor—

“You wanted to see me, sir?” Akechi looks up at him and Shido immediately looks away. Turns his gaze to the television. If he weren’t himself, if he were maybe ten or twenty years younger, he might be blushing. 

Why does Akechi do this to him? Shido has been drawn to him from the beginning and he doesn’t know why. It’s just all part of the ludicrous balancing act going on inside of him, the push and pull of a million wants and old sore spots. Things he’s never addressed, and never will, lit up like a Christmas tree in Akechi’s presence.

He wants to bend Akechi over his knee and—

No. Shido finds the thread of that feeling and pulls it out. Discards it. Like a loose thread from a jacket. Cut off. He does what he always does. He channels his feelings into a cool wrath. Anger is easier. Anger is what he knows. It’s easy to face the world with anger. Shido has schooled himself in the art. 

“Have you seen the news, Akechi-kun?” Shido points at the screen with his scotch glass. It would be impossible to ignore the prattle of the newscasters. Droning on and on about their idiotic theories regarding the mental shutdowns. Shido has turned the volume up high enough to shake the walls. 

Akechi doesn’t look at the screen. He curls his right hand into a fist and says, “I…have.” 

“Look at the screen,” Shido barks. He wants to say, ‘Don’t put your head down like a coward,’ but he doesn’t. 

An expression of sheer anguish appears on Akechi’s face for a fraction of a second. It’s gone by the time he looks up. He turns to face the television like a man on death row. Annealed. Digging his fingers into his palm. 

“We are here with the other employees of Big Bang Burger,” a female newscaster on screen says. “Discussing the life of their fallen coworker. They say it all happened suddenly. It looked like his eyes had gone completely white with black ooze coming from his mouth. Doctors say they have no idea what this mysterious disease could be that appears to make people lose their minds—”

Shido turns it off abruptly. Letting the black screen stare back at Akechi’s face. 

He waits a moment. An agonizing moment where silence speaks volumes—the weight of Shido’s obvious disappointment bears down on both of them. 

“What the hell happened.” It’s not a question. It’s a demand. Shido is demanding answers. Now. 

Akechi bows curtly. “I don’t know. But, it won’t happen again—”

“You don’t know.” Shido puts his scotch glass down, using all his strength not to smash it against the desk. “You don’t know. So you’re saying you don’t know what happens in the metacognitive world. That it’s entirely beyond you. Is that correct?”

“No, I—”

“Enough.” Shido doesn’t need to speak above a low rumble. He can see from the sweat on Akechi’s face, from his clenched fist (so tight it’s shaking), that he’s breaking him.

Unconsciously, he licks his lips. He wants to break him so hard—

“Just tell me one thing,” Shido continues. Corralling his distracting thoughts. “If you can’t understand that world, if you have no control over what goes on there, then what use are you to me?”

The words hang in the air like a thunderstorm. Heavy. About to spill thick raindrops and ruinous lightning. 

“Let me be clear, Akechi-kun…” Shido looks at him over the rim of his glasses. He goes in for the kill. “You only have one purpose here. You go into the metacognitive world, with that special ability of yours I’ve heard so much about, and you kill the people we tell you to kill. No one else. No extra missions, no distractions.” 

He lowers his voice even more. “And absolutely no mistakes. Under any circumstances. Do you understand?” 

Akechi is trembling from head to toe. “Y-yes.” 

“Speak clearly.” Shido despises stuttering in a man. He won't tolerate it from Akechi.

“Yes, I understand, Shido-san.” Akechi straightens his back when he speaks. “I promise it won’t happen again.”

At that, Shido raises his eyebrows. It seems Akechi is good at taking punishment. He’s rallying. Apparently he doesn’t break so easily.

Shido wraps a hand around the arm of his office chair. To keep himself steady. Because seeing this resilient side to his son does things to him, too—he wants to—

“Tomorrow,” Shido continues. Ignoring his own impulses. Burying them under mounds of doubt. “Tomorrow you will go back into that world and kill the right man. The one we agreed on. No mistakes, no screw-ups, no detours. Get it done. Is that clear?” 

“Of course. I will.” Akechi nods resolutely. 

A beacon of pride bursts through the doubt in Shido’s stomach. He’s seeing Akechi’s resolve. His willingness to fix his own mistakes. Like a man. 

It’s a hell of a sight. 

Shido swallows hard. “….Good. And, this should go without saying, but just to be transparent: If you don’t successfully pull off this mission tomorrow, don’t bother coming back here. Ever. Do you understand?” 

Yes, that was a threat, but the real threat was in the words Shido didn’t say. If Akechi fails again, Shido will send the cleaner to get rid of him. He’d be nothing more than a liability at that point. Unacceptable. 

The threat is there but…would Shido ever actually do it? Well. He wants to keep Akechi guessing. 

“…I understand.” Akechi’s arms are pinned to his sides. 

Shido notices for the first time that Akechi is not wearing his gloves. He can’t remember the last time he saw Akechi’s bare hands. It startles him to see them now. Those long fingers, the creamy skin—and there’s a red mark on the side of one hand. Conspicuous and angry looking. Out of place. Shido narrows his eyes at the sight. 

“Where are your gloves?” he spits. 

Akechi glances at him. Wary. “…They’re in my briefcase.” 

“Put them on,” Shido demands. “Don’t go leaving your fingerprints somewhere we can’t explain later. For god’s sake.” 

The real reason is…he doesn’t want anyone else to see Akechi’s bare hands. If Shido isn’t allowed to see them on a regular basis, then no one else should be either. Furthermore, he doesn’t know what that mark is. But it looks like it probably shouldn’t be out in the open air like that. 

“I will be careful. I’ll wear my gloves.” 

“Alright.” Shido sighs. He makes a show of looking at the clock on the wall. Even though he already knows the time. “You’re dismissed.” 

Akechi bows deeply and takes a few steps back. “Thank you, Shido-san. Good evening.” 

As he watches his son leave, Shido fights the urge to call him back. He always, always wants to call him back. He doesn’t have any idea what he would say. He imagines he wouldn’t say anything at all. He would just let this feeling building between them come to its natural conclusion. Shido knows what that is. So does Akechi. They both know how this story will end. If they let it. Shido would make Akechi feel so good…he wants to make him feel good. To make him tremble with need. To get him addicted. He wants Akechi to want him like that. To have something that is just theirs. Something intuitive and natural. Puzzle perfect. Something so _right_ that the whole world would be envious (in an imaginary scenario where anyone at all would be allowed to find out about them). 

Because Shido knows how jealous everyone would be. He wants the world to know that Akechi is his. No one else’s.

And yet. Like always, the door closes behind Akechi and Shido says nothing. He acknowledges the feeling inside of him, but he rationalizes that he never needs to act on them. Sleeping with his son would open a Pandora’s box of huge problems (feelings, discussions, liabilities, potential ethical dilemmas) that Shido really doesn’t fucking need. 

Thoughts are just thoughts. 

Even though it’s getting outlandish how possessive he is over his own son. It doesn’t help that lately Akechi has been acting differently towards him. Practically throwing himself at Shido. Dressing in loose clothes and wagging his hips, bending over where he knows Shido will see him. There isn’t a clear reason why as far as Shido can discern (he doesn’t know how much Akechi knows about their relationship or about the past). But that’s besides the point. Akechi is trying to push him into doing something that Shido is 100% sure he will regret later. Akechi is obviously he’s asking for it— _begging_ for it. 

Fuck. That does things to Shido. He’s got a whole host of issues brewing inside of him (what kind of man would be in this predicament, except him?), he realizes, but that doesn’t make the problem he’s dealing with any less real. Shido’s self-control is being pushed to its limits. 

Shido shakes his head at his own foolish behavior. He doesn’t know what’s wrong with him. Maybe he’s not getting enough sleep. That must be it. 

He’ll go to bed early tonight. Jerk one out in the shower. He’s been pent up from the nonstop barrage of meetings. His eyes are dry and sore from tiredness. He just needs a drink and a good night’s rest. 

His body knows how to take care of itself.

_____________________________

Actually, Shido is more right than he knows. His mind has learned to take care of its own needs…in the form of metacognitive distortion. 

As Shido turns in for the night, his palace teems with malformed entropy…

_______________________________

The Captain sits in his private cabin. A luxurious room with all the amenities of a penthouse suite—designed entirely for appearances, since Shadows don’t need food or rest or anything like that. He touches his legislator’s pin, affixed proudly to his chest, and closes his eyes. 

It’s as close as Shadow Shido (or the real Shido) will ever come to a religious experience. 

Finished praying, he summons Akechi-kun to his room. To him, there is only one Akechi-kun: The cognitive version this palace has created. The version that’s designed to suit him and only him—the tool. The piece of human skin that exists in this world (and therefore, all other worlds) to satisfy his needs. He does not see Akechi-kun as fully human, or at least, not as his own person with agency and identity. He sees Akechi-kun as an extension of himself. They are one and the same. What The Captain desires, Akechi-kun fulfills. They are related by blood and therefore connected in a way no one else can touch. Akechi-kun is his to use as he desires, and he knows the creature will be thankful for every opportunity to exist in his presence. 

So, summoning Akechi-kun is a matter of simply desiring him to appear. He blinks and when he opens his eyes Akechi-kun is there. With nothing more than a gust of red energy pooled around his feet. 

“Captain.” Akechi-kun salutes. His doll-like black eyes are slanted in happiness. He loves being called to Shadow Shido’s bedroom. “You summoned me. How can I be of service?”

The proper question. Nodding, Shadow Shido beckons his son closer. Without missing a beat, Akechi-kun walks towards him, only stopping when Shadow Shido stops motioning him forward. He’s practically in his lap now. A familiar position for them. Akechi-kun smiles wide and hums, reaching out to put his hands on his father’s shoulders. Ready to take a seat on the throne of The Captain’s lap. 

But not today. 

Smiling, Shadow Shido rises to his feet. Quicker than a bullet, he backhands Akechi-kun across the face. Using approximately a quarter of his full-force. More than enough to knock Akechi-kun to the ground. 

“Ah!” Crumpled on the floor, Akechi-kun curls in on himself. Bracing for more blows. His lip is bleeding from where it made contact with Shido’s knuckles. Already swelling. “C-captain! Wh-what…what’s wrong?” 

Shadow Shido is still smiling. He feels better after that slap. “Apologize to me,” he demands.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” Akechi-kun gets to his knees immediately. Prostrating himself in a full dogeza, knocking his forehead on the ground over and over. “It was my mistake! Please forgive me!” 

The Captain licks his lips. Swallows the excess saliva in his mouth. He can feel himself getting hard—his weapon rising to the occasion. Akechi-kun is truly amazing to have this effect on him. He’s so amazing, and yet…such an unfortunate liability at the same time. Because Akechi-kun is the only one who can arouse Shadow Shido so thoroughly, he is priceless. And also, an utter nuisance. 

Shadow Shido loves Akechi-kun. With all this heart. But at the same time, Akechi-kun really pisses him off. 

Crouching down, Shadow Shido presses on the back of Akechi-kun’s head. Pushing his face harder into the floor. “Tell me, why should I forgive you? How are you going to make it up to me?” 

“I-I…I’ll do anything!” Akechi-kun’s voice is muffled against the floor. “Whatever it was I did wrong, I’ll fix it!”

Naturally, Akechi-kun has no idea why The Captain is angry with him. Although they share a consciousness on some level, he’s not privy to all Shadow Shido’s thoughts. He doesn’t know about the goings-on in the real world. Not any more than Shadow Shido needs him to. So he doesn’t know how the _other_ Goro (the real one) fucked up. Shadow Shido could tell him. He could open his mind and let Akechi-kun see what he sees, the inside of the real Shido’s mind. He could. 

But he likes it better this way. When Akechi-kun is innocent of the other Goro’s faults. Just a pile of raw need dying to please him.

So sweet. If Shadow Shido were not flaming mad, he’d want to kiss him. 

Not now. There will be time for that later.

The Captain buries a hand in Akechi-kun’s hair and pulls. Lifts his face up. “How are you going to fix it?” 

Akechi-kun’s eyes dart back and forth. Searching his Captain’s face for a hint about how he should proceed. What he wants. Although, Shadow Shido is giving him nothing. His face is covered by the helmet and a placid smile. As calm as if he were on fishing in a still lake one quiet evening. Patient. Unhurried in his simmering rage. 

Dangerous. 

Akechi-kun begins to panic. Hands shaking, he reaches for the belt buckle on The Captain’s pants. Opening it with practiced ease, he finds Shadow’s Shido’s hard length. He fixes a smile on his face and works his hand against Shadow Shido’s erection. Slow and tight. From tip to tip. Just the way Shadow Shido likes it. 

“Let me please you, Captain.” His tone is beseeching. “I can use my mouth or my hands, or you can use my hole. Whatever you want. Please, let me be of service…” 

Pulling out Shadow Shido’s formidable rod, he lowers his face to suck on it. Like the slut that he is, his eyes get bigger in greedy admiration. He’s already drooling at the sight of that cock he loves so much. He opens wide, fully ready to deepthroat him on command. As he’s been trained. 

Before Akechi-kun can get a taste—when his tongue is barely a centimeter away from Shadow Shido’s proud member—The Captain backhands him again. This time on the other side of his face. Akechi-kun moans in surprise and disappointment. Falling back to the ground. 

Shadow Shido rises. He puts his dick back in his pants and buckles the belt tightly. Depriving his needy son of what he wants the most. Because that would hardly be a punishment, of course. Dicking him down is a reward. And Akechi-kun (or the _other_ one at least) hasn’t earned it.

“What makes you think you deserve a taste of my cock?” Shadow Shido snarls. Crossing his arms defiantly. 

Tears in his eyes, Akechi-kun shakes his head violently. “I don’t! I don’t deserve it! You’re right. I know I need to work hard to earn my Captain’s cock. It was foolish and selfish of me to think otherwise…” 

“That’s right,” Shadow Shido nods. His mood is already improving. Ah, his sweet Akechi-kun knows exactly what to say to him. 

Not that he’ll let him off any easier just because of that, though. Absolutely not! Talk is cheap. Actions speak louder than words. 

“If you know that much, then get up off the floor. Let’s start working on how you’re going to fix this.”

“Yes, sir.” Akechi-kun stands at attention. Awaiting instructions.

“Strip.” 

As expected, Akechi-kun disrobes as fast as he can. Tosses all his clothes into a forgotten heap in the corner of the room. He’s not embarrassed by his own nakedness. Between them, clothes may as well not exist. They’ve been naked in front of each other so many times. 

Without a stitch of clothing on him, Akechi-kun stands back at attention. His black eyes are glassier now. He’s listening to The Captain’s directions. This is a place that is easy for him to be. Shadow Shido knows that. He doesn’t mind. The truth is they both enjoy this. Akechi-kun lives to serve and Shadow Shido lives to command. They compliment each other. When they are in sync, anticipating each other’s needs, fulfilling desires that have yet to be spoken…it is sublime. Perfection. 

His precious boy. His true treasure. _His._ His Akechi-kun. 

Smiling again, Shadow Shido runs an affectionate hand through Akechi-kun’s hair. He lets his eyes roam over every inch of his son’s naked body, he lets Akechi-kun experience the grace of his stare. His gaze is an aphrodisiac to this creature. He watches as Akechi-kun’s legs clench as he withstands the sensation of being looked at. His slender manhood hardens under Shadow Shido’s eyes. As if it’s been bidden to rise and, like Akechi-kun himself, it is helpless to resist the instruction. 

The more Shadow Shido stares at him, the harder Akechi-kun gets. His cock is pressed tight against his abdomen now. His stance is loosening. Shifting his weight from foot to foot, biting his lip. His hands open and close. Clutching the air fruitlessly. He wants to touch The Captain very badly—that’s obvious—but he hasn’t been given permission yet. 

Shadow Shido circles him a few times. Then he stands in front of him and crosses his arms. Waits. Watching his son’s desire begin to overtake him. 

“C-captain…” he whines. A drop of pearly liquid seeps from the tip of his twitching manhood. 

He hasn’t been touched once. Not counting the times Shadow Shido backhanded him. 

Delicious. 

“Do you love being watched so much?” The Captain taunts. His own cock is rock hard by now, but he pays it no mind. He resides with the unchallenged notion that all of his desires will be fulfilled, sooner or later. So he’s in no rush.

Akechi-kun blushes. Lowers his eyes sheepishly. 

“Answer me.” Shadow Shido takes a step towards him. Let’s the aura of his presence (another aphrodisiac to Akechi-kun) work its magic. Akechi-kun’s knees clack together. He moans. He’s having trouble staying on his feet. 

Shadow Shido leans in. Drinks his son’s tortured whimpers like a fine scotch. Savors them. “I haven’t laid so much as a finger on you, and you’re already dripping wet.” 

It’s true. There’s a drop of pre-cum on The Captain’s polished boots. It spilled from Akechi-kun’s weeping cock. His juices are flowing like a woman’s now. Like a needy bitch in heat. 

“Nnngh…” Akechi-kun’s face is as red as it’s ever been. His expression pleads for some attention. But he knows better than to ask. 

Shadow Shido cracks the knuckles of his right hand unconsciously. He’s rather excited himself for what comes next. He wants his hands to be ready.

“Since you like being watched so much,” he explains. The bedroom around them dissolves. As the king of this palace, Shadow Shido can manipulate the fabric of its space to his will. “I thought I would share your act of atonement with the rest of our crew.” 

On his command, they are suddenly standing on a dais. A glorious golden platform, raised about a yard off the ground, with lights bearing down upon them. There is a circle of masked cruise ship patrons surrounding the stage. They’re talking as if this is some kind of scheduled performance. Like they’d been invited. They chatter to each other and make comments as Cognitive Akechi (very naked, his pre-cum-smeared body on full display) and The Captain appear before them. 

“So this is our famous tool’s true purpose.” 

“Our captain has good taste.”

“What a delicious looking young man…I daresay if I were ten years younger, I would…”

Shadow Shido is grinning from ear to ear now. Akechi-kun seems stunned, glancing nervously between each masked patron—people he sees on a regular basis, all the time, but never like this!—shrinking backward from their stares. He whips around to face his Captain. Eyes shining. Unsure how to read this. He looks like a frightened deer caught in the headlights. 

It’s adorable.

Shadow Shido wraps a possessive hand around his waist. Caressing his hipbone with one thumb. “Do you hear them?” he asks. “Do you hear what they’re saying about you?” 

Akechi-kun lowers his face. His ears are stained a lovely crimson. “I…hear them.”

“They all want you for themselves,” Shadow Shido continues anyway. “Think about how many cocks out there just got hard seeing you like this. How many women started fanning themselves and their wet cunts. You are a temptation like no other, Akechi-kun.” 

Unable to stop himself—and seeing no reason why he should—Shadow Shido bites down hard on Akechi-kun’s ear. Marking him like an animal. In front of the whole ship. Hoping everyone can hear, he growls, “And you’re all _mine_.” 

Akechi-kun cries out in pain and delight. That bite is the first touch he’s gotten in a while and it makes his knees collapse from under him. He lands on the floor in a heap, cock twitching hard. He’s clearly exerting every effort not to start touching himself right now. This boy is beyond shame, so he probably doesn’t hold back because of the audience. But because The Captain has not allowed him to have any relief yet. 

“C-Captain…Shido-sama…I…” He crawls forward on his hands and knees. Arriving at The Captain’s feet. He prostrates himself again and says, “Let me atone for what I’ve done! Please!” 

Satisfied in the extreme, Shadow Shido holds his arms out to the crowd. “What do you all think?” he asks. “Should we carry out his sentence?” 

All the shadows begin talking at once.

“I think it’s about time.” 

“Let the boy make up for what he did!”

“A hundred lashes—from the whip I say!” 

“Don’t be generous now, that cretin has it coming!” 

Akechi-kun doesn’t even flinch under their words. He’s not afraid of punishment. This, Shadow Shido knows, is one of the most amazing things about his boy. He’s not afraid of pain or suffering. He knows how to take it like a man. That, in Shadow Shido’s book, earns his ultimate mark of respect. Akechi-kun doesn’t cower before his fate. He rises to meet it.

The Captain loves that about his son. 

Not only that, Akechi-kun doesn’t shy away from physical pain on the best of days. He’s perhaps _too_ comfortable with it. Shadow Shido understands. He knows that Akechi-kun uses to pain as a means of keeping his feelings under control. It’s obvious to anyone who really looks. Shadow Shido respects that (they all have their vices) but he also takes it as a responsibility. He’s the only one allowed to inflict pain on Akechi-kun. From now until the end of time. Akechi-kun is not even allowed to hurt himself. Only The Captain. He dolls out the pain he thinks is sufficient, no more no less. Then he tends to the aftermath with the proper diligence. 

Because Akechi-kun doesn’t belong to himself. He belongs to The Captain. His pain and his pleasure are subject to Shadow Shido’s approval. And he will be satisfied with that. 

“Alas, I am a merciful God!” Shadow Shido cries. The crowd goes wild. Applauding like crazy. “I have already decided the appropriate punishment. He will be punished as a boy! One hit for every person in this room.” 

A wave of cheers breaks over the audience. They all call out their assent. 

“A fine choice!” 

“Seems more than fair!” 

“Our Captain is such a wise leader. We’re so lucky to have him!” 

“I feel vindicated!” 

Pleased, Shadow Shido looks down at the small, naked figure at his feet. “You see, Akechi-kun, what you did affects not only me and you, but everyone. When you make a mistake that compromises the plan, it ripples out to everyone who would benefit from my success. All of Tokyo. Even all of Japan, perhaps even the world! Do you understand now?” 

Rising to a sitting position, Akechi-kun’s expression is resolute. There is an uncountable number of people in this room right now. Who knows how many hits he’s about to take. But, he’s not scared in the slightest. “I understand, Captain. I take full responsibility for my actions.” 

Shadow Shido nods once. “Good boy.” 

The real beauty of this moment is the fact that Akechi-kun trusts The Captain with his life. He will live or die by his hand. The hand that brought him into this world in the first place. His father’s hand. His lover’s hand. His leader’s hand.

The hand that’s about to carry out his punishment.

Suddenly there’s a chair behind Shadow Shido. Summoned with red energy. The Captain takes a seat. Makes himself comfortable. They’re going to be here a while.

“Akechi-kun. Here.” Smiling calmly, The Captain gestures to his lap. “On my knee.” 

Rising to shaky feet, Akechi-kun instinctively knows exactly what’s been asked of him. He spreads his nude body like an offering on his father’s lap. Face down, ass up. An overgrown child ready to take their spanking. 

“Don’t you dare cum,” Shadow Shido warns. “You don’t have my permission.” He knows, of course, that even though he’s being hit, Akechi-kun would certainly achieve climax from a spanking. But. Those are the magic words. Simply by saying that in the space of this palace—by breathing life into those words, denying him permission—Shadow Shido has taken away Akechi-kun’s ability to cum. The boy won’t be able to find release now until The Captain says otherwise. 

This is his palace. He has full control over everything. Plus, him and Akechi-kun are the same entity.

Biting his lip, bent at odd angles on his father’s lap, Akechi-kun steadies himself. “I…understand…Captain….” he huffs. 

Looking down at his ass, The Captain can see where Akechi-kun’s balls are already taut, heavy from his unspent release. He reaches down to fondle them, rubbing the sensitive skin with the pads of his fingers. Akechi-kun cries out brokenly. If he wasn’t locked under Shadow Shido’s orders, he definitely would have cum from just that touch alone. His body is so keyed up. As it is, his cock twitches violently. Staining Shadow Shido’s leg with pre-cum. 

It’s going to be a long punishment for him. 

“Are you ready, son?” 

“Yes sir.”

In the beginning, it’s hard to know how much force to use in his slaps. The Captain decides to go soft at first. Since this is going to be a marathon not a sprint. Even the first spank though—barely more than a tap—has Akechi-kun howling. Baring his voice for the audience. Rubbing his cock shamelessly into The Captain’s pant leg. 

“Hnnh. How was that? Was it pain or pleasure?” Shadow Shido smirks. Running his free hand down Akechi-kun’s throat. Gripping his jaw to hold his head up. He wants to see the look on his face while he takes his punishment. “Regardless, you need to count, Akechi-kun.” 

“…O-o-one…” he warbles.

“No.” Shadow Shido squeezes his face dangerously hard. He could crush his bones like a baby bird if he wanted to. “No stuttering. Speak clearly.” 

Squeezing his eyes shut for a moment to compose himself, Akechi-kun tries again. “One.” 

“Much better.” He slaps him again. At the same level of force.

“Two.” 

_Whack._ The sound of slapped flesh is a delightful symphony. It reverberates around the stage. 

“Three.” 

_Whack_.

“Ah! Four!” 

_Whack._

“F-five!” 

Shadow Shido frowns. “If you stutter, we start over.” 

Tears stream down Akechi-kun’s face. “Please no, Captain! Have mercy!” 

“Hmph. How lenient do you think I am? Back to one. Let’s go.” 

They start over. It takes a few restarts for Akechi-kun to get control of himself. He’s suffering so much with the need to cum, he rubs himself on Shido’s leg hard enough to actually cause damage to his skin. But it’s to no avail. He won’t get any relief until The Captain allows it. 

“Keep your hips still,” Shadow Shido scolds. “You know it’s useless.” 

“P-please…it’s too much…I need to…” Akechi-kun is whining now. His ass is red from Shadow Shido’s hard slaps. The redness spreads from his ass, to his balls, to the tops of his thighs. The whole area. 

It’s a pitiful sight. And an enticing, fairly desperate plea. But since they are cut from the same metacognitive cloth, Shadow Shido intuitively knows where Akechi-kun’s true boundaries are. They don’t need safe words. Shadow Shido can feel exactly where the line is; it’s part of his own consciousness. He doesn’t imagine crossing it. That’s not his pleasure. His pleasure is taking Akechi-kun right up to the line and no further. Letting him sit with the line. Taste it. Bask in it. Feel the freedom of what that line means for both of them. It’s a wonderful thing. 

Naturally, he knows that they have yet to reach his son’s real limit. Far from it.

“Take a deep breath,” Shadow Shido commands. Of course, Akechi-kun complies. He holds it for a count of eight, like they’ve practiced. Then he exhales slowly. “There. Better? You’re stronger than this. You can take more.” 

With renewed resolve, Akechi-kun nods. “Yes. I can take more.” 

Very happy with that answer, Shadow Shido grabs a big fistful of Akechi-kun’s reddened ass. Slurping down his son’s cries like a glutton. “That’s my boy.”

They continue with the punishment. 

“Eighty-eight.”

_Whack._

“Eighty-nine.”

At ninety, Shadow Shido increases the level of force. He’s spanking him hard enough to leave marks for days. Crippling him. Poor Akechi-kun won’t be able to sit comfortably for weeks. At the least. 

“One hundred and…fifty…” 

_Whack._

“One…hundred…and…fifty…one—ah!” He groans in utter torment.

“Your counting is getting weak, Akechi-kun.” The flesh on his ass is quivering. Highly sensitized by the spanking. Golden eyes sparkling, Shadow Shido dips his middle finger into the crevice down the middle. He prods the hole there teasingly, rubbing the pucker just to get it riled up. 

“Oh! Oh, oh please, touch me more! Put your finger inside—!” Akechi-kun tries to spear himself on his father’s finger, but The Captain takes his hand away before he gets the chance. 

Shadow Shido shakes his head. “Now, now. Don’t be hasty. You’re getting punished, remember?”

Akechi-kun sobs in despair. Tortured to the brink of sanity. He needs his Captain more than anything in world right now. He’s getting close to his limit. They can both sense it. 

They’re close. But not quite there.

“Don’t make me start over,” Shadow Shido reminds him menacingly. 

“NO no no nonononuhnuh…” Akechi-kun shakes his head so hard it nearly comes off his shoulders. 

So cute. 

Smiling, Shadow Shido raises his hand again. “Start counting. Loud and clear, now.” 

_Whack!_

“One hundred and fifty-two!” 

“Good.” _Whack!_

“One hundred and fifty-three!” 

_Whack!_ The Captain is giving it his all now. Since this is the last dash. He’s not using full force (obviously, that would really break Akechi-kun), but he’s almost at half power. That alone sets a brutal, brutal pace.

…

“One hundred and…ninety-eight!”

_Whack!!_

“One hundred…and….ninety…nine!” 

_Whack!!!_

“T-two hundred! Two hundred! Two hundred two hundred…please, two hundred, I didn’t stutter, I promise, I just lost my breath. Please, two hundred…two hundred…” 

“Akechi-kun.” Shadow Shadow puts his hand down. He combs his fingers through Akechi-kun’s wild hair. Rests a soothing palm on his back. Steadies his breathing. Until he’s quiet. Then he says, “Your punishment is finished.” 

The audience stands up and cheers. 

“Well done, Akechi-kun!” 

“You took it all! Bravo!” 

“A fitting punishment. Taken like a real man!” 

“How admirable!” 

Carefully, The Captain turns Akechi-kun over in his lap. Holds him in arms like a precious princess. Or a bride. “You hear that? They’re singing your praises.” He kisses his son’s forehead. Full of pride. 

Of course they should applaud Akechi-kun. The whole world should. Everyone should see how wonderful he is. And they should look on enviously because he belongs to only one man: The Captain. 

All is as it should be.

Akechi-kun is smiling now. Proud of himself. He looks back at the crowd and puts his hands together gratefully. “Thank you for your support! I worked hard!”

“Yes, you did.” Shadow Shido kisses him again. “You did well.” 

With a wave of his hand, The Captain makes the audience disappear. The room dissolves and reforms—now they’re back in his bedroom. Standing on the carpet where they last were. Shadow Shido carries Akechi-kun bridal style over to the bed. There’s no way he’s able to walk. He’ll be bedridden for days. And Shadow Shido will be there by his side the entire time. Making sure he gets rest and nourishment, tending to the wounds on his backside. That too is his responsibility. As a leader. As The Captain. As Akechi-kun’s better half. 

While he wipes down the marks on his son’s ass with iodine and cool water, Shadow Shido imparts his final thoughts on today’s lesson. “You know that when I’m angry with you it’s never because I dislike you or don’t want you around,” he says. “You are an indispensable tool. Never forget that.” 

“Thank you, sir.” Akechi-kun’s eyes are wide with admiration. He reaches out a hand for him to hold. Desperate for him.

Shadow Shido takes that hand and kisses it. “I get angry because I’m disappointed. I see how great you could be and when you don’t live up to your own potential…” He sighs and shakes his head sadly. “It frustrates me.”

“I know, Captain. I’m sorry…” More tears well up in Akechi-kun’s eyes. He squeezes his Captain’s hand as tight as he can. Never wanting to let go. 

Shadow Shido brushes the tears away from his face. Smoothes his hair back gently. “Don’t apologize anymore. What’s done is done. You’ve atoned for it. And I’ve already forgiven you.” 

Sobbing ugly tears, snot running down his face, Akechi-kun kisses his father’s hand like it’s a holy relic. Worshipping it. Covering every inch of the skin with his mouth. “Thank you so much…I…will try to be worthy of your forgiveness. To live up to your expectations. Always.” 

Finally at ease, Shadow Shido slides into bed next to him. “Make sure that you do.” It’s the last they need to say about this topic. 

“Now…” Shadow Shido throws Akechi-kun onto his back. Slides himself in between his spindly legs. Undoes the zipper on his pants, pulling out his impossibly still-hard member. “I remember that a certain young man worked very hard to earn this today.” 

Grinning from ear to ear, Akechi-kun nods happily. “Yes! I worked so hard, Captain! Please, tell me I earned it…”

Answering his grin with a benevolent smile of his own, Shadow Shido nods. “You did. Certainly. So, take your reward.” 

He pushes inside of his tool with every ounce of vigor he’s been aching for. Akechi-kun moans at the intrusion, arching his back into the sensation. He’s too weak to hold his legs up on his own, so The Captain holds them apart for him. He pounds into him at just the right angle. Giving him his favorite treat. The cock that he lives for.

Pleasure explodes across Akechi-kun’s face. His eyes roll back in his head as he surrenders himself to the exquisite joy of being fucked by his God. He cries out in happiness again and again, his voice climbing higher and higher with each thrust deep inside. 

But he’s still under strict orders.

“Captain…will you let me…?” His hands scramble for purchase on Shadow Shido’s shoulder pads. 

Of course he knows what his son wants. He murmurs in his ear. “You want to cum?” He doesn’t stop fucking him for a second

“Yes, yes—please! I’ve—ah!—I’ve been good, right? Won’t you let me? Ooh, that’s so good! Right there! Please?” Akechi-kun can barely breathe. The top of his head is hitting the backboard of the bed every time Shido thrusts into him. He doesn’t even notice.

It’s the most beautiful sight in the world. His perfect tool, consumed by the need Shadow Shido has shown him how to feel. 

“Ask me properly, then.” A fair command. The last one.

Using the strength he’s built up over the course of this lesson, Akechi-kun takes a deep breath, opens his eyes and asks, “Captain, may I please cum?” 

This time, Shadow Shido is happy to grant his wish. “Yes. You may.” 

No sooner are the words out of his mouth and Akechi-kun is cumming all over the place. Hard. A climax that shakes him to his core and turns him inside out. Once it hits, it doesn’t stop. It keeps rolling as Shadow Shido pounds into him harder and faster. He tumbles over the edge again and again, making a mess out of both of them. 

Shadow Shido feels it’s the right time to let himself go too. So he does. 

They lay tangled on the bed. The Captain is still wearing his uniform (he’s forgotten to take it off). The medals and buttons make interesting impressions on Akechi-kun’s fair skin. While they lay there, drowning in each other, Akechi-kun leans over and presses a quick, reverent kiss to Shadow Shido’s legislator’s pin. 

He admires that pin just as much as The Captain does. That’s the real blessing of the palace. Everything feels right.

__________________________

The following morning, Shido wakes up feeling great. 

He was right. His body takes care of itself so well.

**Author's Note:**

> Shido feels great...if only we could say the same for our poor Goro T___T 
> 
> For you <3


End file.
